The Wise Insight of the Clearing
by Rachel the Borrowed
Summary: Link and Zelda are best friends in a peaceful Hyrule. One restless night, they realize how much they miss each other. Find out what the clearing knew before they did. Link x Zelda


**Disclaimer**: I don't own anything Zelda related.

The Wise Insight of the Clearing 

Princess Zelda was restless. It was long after the twilight had settled into darkness, but it still possessed some light given off by evidence of a full moon behind the castle. She turned around again in her oversized bed. She would not sleep tonight. Surrendering to her impatient body and mind, she stood and stretched, feeling her muscles tense and then relax. She picked up her silk top blanket and wrapped it around her lithe body and sheer pink nightgown. She padded barefoot across her room to her balcony. Turning the brass handle, the door creaked open. Zelda slipped outside into the summer's hours of darkness, hating the feeling of the cold tiles on her exposed feet. She should be outside on the grass on a summer like this one. Seeing the glow of the moon, she turned around and tried to glance around the stone walls. Not being able to see it, she sighed and gave up. It seemed as if she couldn't do as she pleased anymore; always being blocked by some sort of barrier.

She thought of Link. He was perhaps staring at the moon right now, even at this ungodly hour. Her duties had stripped her of any time to see him, and she missed her best friend. She wanted to see him, to admire the moon together. The breeze picked up and slid through her blonde locks. She shivered, but not just from the cold. Impulsively, she pushed the door open behind her, and then closed it with a small click. Pushing the blanket off of her body, she slipped on sandals and a white cloak with a hood. She was small and stealthy and knew her way around back exits in the servant's quarters. Her sandaled feet made quiet rustling noises against the marble floors as she made her escape.

Out of the palace and in the stables, she lifted her white hood off from around her soft hair. A lone stable boy was deep in a drunken sleep in a pile of hay, clutching his empty bottle of whiskey. Zelda giggled at the sight as she led her buckskin mare, Kasmira out of her stall. She saddled her horse quietly and led her out of the stable. Link had taught her how to not get caught by the guards that were her supposed protectors. They were just another barrier. She mounted her agile horse and rode out undetected into the night, the breeze chasing her across the soft grass.

Link had not slept a wink on that summer night. He leaned against one of his elbows in his small Kokiri bed. He felt anxious for reasons unknown to him. He began to listen to the sound of his own breathing, hoping that it might make him drowsy. He took a deep breath, and suddenly smelled lilacs. It reminded him of Zelda. He had not seen her for months. Not since the spring, when the lilacs had started to bloom. But now it was midsummer, and he missed her terribly. He sighed. Link stood up and ran a hand through his unruly dark blonde hair. He pulled on a loose white cotton shirt over his toned chest, not bothering to tie up the top. He pushed his curtain of a door open and stepped outside into the cool breeze. It felt so refreshing against his heat flushed skin. Looking up, he couldn't help but notice the unusually large harvest moon in the dark sky. It smiled down on him in all its orange glory. Link licked his lips and tasted the air. He sat down crossed leg fashion on his wooden balcony. Still anxious, he began to wait patiently, although it was unknown for what.

Zelda dismounted her mare outside the Kokiri Forest entrance. She landed not so gracefully, but at least on her feet. She scolded herself for wearing sandals to ride her horse. Her feet tingled. She tied Kasmira up to a tree with a long piece of rope from a saddlebag. Zelda stroked her nose affectionately and promised that she would not be too long gone. Kasmira eyed her, and then lowered her head to eat the fresh green grass that grew uncontrollably around the forest. Zelda put her white hood on once again and strode into the forest entrance. She lingered on the bridge for a moment to look at the sky. The trees grew tall around her and she still could not see the full moon. Less discouraged, and more hopeful, she turned up her chin and walked into the Kokiri Forest.

-

Link was becoming more and more awake every minute. He almost felt giddy at this wicked hour. He looked around at his home. Then he looked at the forest around him. It was beautiful. The trees were old and had wisdom beyond any human's. They told stories with their leaves, and sang verses with their bark. He glanced at the entrance to the forest, and saw a womanly figure in a white cloak and hood cross the threshold. For an instant, he could not tell who she was, but then reprimanded himself for not knowing immediately. He knew she was Zelda. She had a feminine bounce to her walk that just suited her personality perfectly. He quickly and quietly climbed down his ladder. Each wooden rung made Link more anxious to see her. He jumped off before he reached the bottom and landed gracefully onto worn grass. He sneaked up to a large oak tree and hid behind it. Its rough bark lightly hooked onto the fabric of his shirt. He peered around the tree and saw Zelda walking towards his house still. She uncloaked her face. She was certainly a beauty. Her fair hair swung gently around her shoulders and her dark blue eyes radiated, even in the dark. She looked up at his house with curiosity and slowed her pace. He silently ran back to the bottom of his ladder, so he would not scare her. She had turned around Link's oak tree and was still looking at his house, apparently in thought. She then spotted him, leaning against his timber ladder, staring at the sky.

Zelda was not even startled when she saw him standing outside. He probably even knew somehow that she was coming. Link noticed her and gave her a warm grin. She smiled back at him and jogged the rest of the short length to reach him. His arms encircled her, and she welcomed the warm hug. She in return wrapped her arms around his neck. Zelda wanted to explain her midnight visit to him, for she knew he would understand, even though she herself didn't.

_I could not sleep. _

_Nor could I. _

He longed for her too.

_I'm so glad you're here. I found something… I think you will like it. _

Zelda was immediately curious. Link always had charming surprises for her.

He picked up her hand and led her into the forest area behind his house. They talked and laughed about nothing in particular as he guided her deeper into the forest. Soon they came to a large old weeping willow tree. Link pushed some of the long branches out of their way and ducked under others to reach the trunk of the massive tree. He pushed open the branches from Zelda with one hand, and guided her in with the other.

_Close your eyes._

Zelda obeyed, and her curiosity heightened. She felt Link tenderly push her forwards and felt some leaves on her face. She felt her body temperature change and realized that Link had put his arm around her waist.

He hesitated for an instant, feeling nervous. What if she disapproved of it…? But then again, how could she ever?

_You can open your eyes now. _

Zelda opened her long lashed eyes and blinked a few times. She could not believe the landscape before her, and she almost gasped with delight.

A natural miniature clearing was centered in the middle of what seemed like miles of old trees. A large stump of a tree was right in the middle and was mostly coated in moss, as was almost everything else. Flowers blossomed at random and fireflies danced and swam effortlessly through the air. A small stream glittered in the moonlight as it tumbled by rocks and ferns along the back of the clearing. Zelda looked up at the dark sky and could not help but notice an outsized orange harvest moon grinning down at them among a thousand white stars. It was almost quiet there, save for the sound of water rolling down rocks and a few animal rustling in the trees. It showed summer at its best, even smelling like fruit, warmth, and wood. She turned to Link with a look of pure amazement. He looked down at her and she threw her arms around him.

_It's just absolutely beautiful._

_I knew you would love it as much as I do._

Link stepped out of their embrace and led Zelda near the stump. The ground under their feet was soft and mossy, and Zelda's sandaled feet were cushioned. She propped herself on the edge of the stump and Link stood beside her, looking at the moon. She admired it for a while with him, leaning against his hip, and began drifting off into a daydream. Zelda felt Link's body rise slightly as he took a deep breath, and the small movement redirected her thoughts. She looked around the sacred clearing and noticed a few colourful fairies float lazily through the air. They fluttered their delicate wings past Zelda and Link's faces, either showing off their exotic beauty or making rude faces at them. They laughed softly together. Suddenly, but not surprisingly, Link began to sing a little Kokiri folk song relating to fairies. He had a very musical voice and Zelda found herself rising up and dropping her cloak onto the stump. She spun in time to his tune and glided gracefully across the clearing, like the fairies from his song. She spun up to Link, her flaxen hair fanning out, and picked up his hands. Link smiled and continued singing as he became her partner in her dance. They flew elegantly across the meadow in unison as Zelda sang in harmony with Link. They spun and dipped and waltzed together across the makeshift ballroom. The melody was coming to an end, and they sang the last few notes of the song slower. Link twirled Zelda away from him for a moment, only to bring her back into his arms once more for the final note. They stood like that, Link's hand on her waist, Zelda's on his toned shoulder, slowly lowering their other hands, but still keeping their fingers laced together. The slight breeze blew Zelda's simple pink nightdress around their knees. Common sense told her that it was too hot out to be cold, but her body rebelled against any sense and shivered anyway. She pressed her body to Link's, boldly wanting to feel closer to him.

_Zelda…_

_Link…_

She smiled up at him and he removed his hand from her waist and moved it onto her face, touching her cheek faintly and smiling in return. Both of their hearts jumped as Zelda wrapped her arms around Link's neck. He responded by holding her delicate waist in his strong but careful arms. She touched his golden hair behind his head and tilted her head a little. He leaned in accordingly, and breathed in her lovely fragrance. There was a pause. Link lingered there, his mouth a mere coin's length away from Zelda's, building up the anticipation. She let a quick gasp of air escape. Their lips brushed, and then met in a gentle but passionate kiss. Link ran his fingers through Zelda's silky pale hair. After several moments, they broke apart. Still holding on tightly, they gazed into each other's eyes warmly. Zelda's eyes grew wide and she blushed cutely, as the realization of what had just happened had set in. They were both almost too oblivious of the love that they secretly had for each other. Zelda was at a loss for words. Link entwined his fingers into hers and smiled down at her. She smirked and touched his tanned cheek, her blush disappearing.

_I think I have always known…_

_I love you._

**Author's Note: **So, this is my first Zelda fanfiction! I hope everyone liked it. I wrote it randomly on two different occasions, both at around 2 30 in the morning. So anyway, there will be more to come, and it won't be a 2 30 am dealy. So I wanted to talk about the title of this. Basically, the woodland clearing thing is a symbol for Link's subconcious feelings for Zelda, which was kind of a last minute idea, so it didn't turn out the way I would have liked it to. But I think it turned out ok. Let me know if you did too, or if you want to leave any constructive critisism, that's great too!

RB


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